Answers: No clamp with newest Milwaukee miter saws & moreHot

Chris
August 15, 2008

00

A lot of questions have been going around the woodworking community wondering why the newest Milwaukee miter saws (The 6955-20 and 6950-20) do not include the very much standard hold down clamp. Another question is why the right fence does not slide, while the left one does.

Not knowing these answers myself, I decided to send an email to Milwaukee, and see if I would get an answer.

I did, and here is what they said.

"The clamp is not included because the vast majority of professional finish carpenters (our target user) do not use clamps. Regarding the sliding fence, while the right fence will not slide, it is easily removable."

So we got a straight answer about the clamp, but no real answer about why the right fence does not slide.

I am a finish carpenter, and use a miter saw for a lot of my daily work; while I agree that a clamp is not used very often, they are very useful when they are needed. It is nice to know you have that option if you need it, and at times can keep your fingers safe. At the price you are paying for the saws, it seems to me a little silly to exclude a relatively cheep accessory, that also adds a bit of safety.

The right fence not being able to slide is a bit weird. They say it is easily removable, but what if you are cutting base standing up, and sharing the saw with someone who is cutting crown lying flat. You would be taking the fence on and off the whole day. From what I have been hearing, there is a "hack" you can perform to solve this problem, but why should we have to do it.

If you already own this saw, let us know if you agree with Milwaukee. Also be sure to add you review in our power tool reviews section.